The Jersey City Parks Coalition gave lessons in planting flowers Saturday morning in Pershing Field to “captains” who will lead their community teams across the city during the BIG DIG project scheduled for Oct. 27.

Roughly 50 volunteers gathered at 9 a.m. at the park near Summit and Manhattan Avenues for the brief gardening lesson. The beautification campaign entails planting roughly 50,000 flowers at more than 80 sites across the city.

“We want people to feel good about Jersey City,” said Charlene Burke, BIG DIG project manager and secretary of the Jersey City Parks Coalition.

Burke said that in addition to beautifying the city the goal is also to sow a seed among residents encouraging them to be active in taking care of city parks.

The first BIG DIG took place last year. Some 650 people participated and they planted more than 18,000 flowers, Burke said.

Burke expects more than 1,000 volunteers to participate this year and she said some 35,000 daffodils and 15,000 tulips will be planted.

Seventeen-year-old Ferris High School student Elvan Espinal is one of the team captains and he enlisted two friends to participate.